- 8.96 million passengers welcomed, with Company eyeing further growth in 2025
- Winter months grew by 21%; summer months grew by 12%
- Annual seat occupancy at all-time high of 86%
- Works on several key projects set to be completed by Q2 2025
Malta International Airport welcomed 8.96 million passengers in 2024, registering growth of 14.8% over the previous year. At a press conference held on Thursday, Malta International Airport CEO Alan Borg noted that this is the third-highest annual growth rate in the airport’s history.
A closer look at how the year unfolded showed that while August was the busiest month with 983,182 passenger movements, March experienced the strongest growth. Increasing by 30% over the previous year, March traffic surpassed the 600,000-passenger mark for the first time in 2024. Additionally, passenger traffic in the winter months increased by 21%, significantly outpacing the growth registered in summer (+12%). Seat occupancy, which reached an annual all-time high of 86%, was another indicator of a successful year for Malta International Airport.
“The solid growth witnessed last year put us in the lead among our southern European counterparts, indicating that Malta remained popular with travellers. A positive outlook for the first quarter of 2025 together with a summer schedule that is expected to connect us to 109 destinations, prime us for further growth this year. Together with other tourism stakeholders, we remain committed to addressing seasonality through the promotion of Malta’s appeal during the winter months,” said Mr Borg, whilst thanking the airport team and all stakeholders for an exceptional year.
Addressing the press conference, Malta Tourism Authority CEO Carlo Micallef congratulated MIA on the record results achieved in 2024, saying that these results reflect the strong collaboration between MTA and MIA to maximise airline connectivity to Malta and ensure that adequate capacity is secured to cater for the strong demand from a wide number of markets worldwide. This excellent performance is also being mirrored in record inbound tourism to the Maltese Islands. Mr Micallef also commented on the strong off-peak seat capacity, flight frequency and tourist arrival increases, which further contributed to a decrease in seasonality in the Maltese tourism industry.
At the press conference, it was revealed that Malta International Airport expects to see 9.3 million passengers in 2025. An update on the Company’s key projects showed how Malta International Airport is equipping itself to handle more passenger traffic while retaining the high levels of service it has been commended for over the years, with planned investments for 2025 amounting to €70 million.
In the coming months, the Company expects to unveil the new Schengen arrivals corridor, which leads guests directly into the Baggage Reclaim area. This area is set to undergo a refresh, receiving a modernised aesthetic for a better guest experience and seeing the replacement of existing reclaim belts with newer models.
Works on the second phase of the Apron 8 South (previously Apron X) project are on track for completion by the second quarter of 2025, furnishing Malta International Airport with four new aircraft parking stands in addition to the four that came on stream in 2024. The second quarter will also see the Company unveil its new VIP Terminal, which is expected to offer a significantly elevated experience to discerning guests.
In parallel, the Company is laying the groundwork for the istallation of a photovoltaic farm, which is set to generate an additional 5.1 million kWh of clean energy. Together with ongoing upgrades in the airport’s heating, ventilation and airconditioning (HVAC) systems and other energy-efficiency initiatives, this farm will allow Malta International Airport to edge closer to achieving carbon neutral status.
The press conference was brought to a conclusion with the announcement that the Company’s Board of Directors has resolved to recommend to shareholders at the forthcoming Annual General Meeting a proposal for the Company to put in place a share buyback programme. Additionally, the Company’s financial targets for 2025 were revealed to be the following:
- Revenue of €147 million
- EBITDA of €91 million
- Profit of €48 million
- Planned investment of €70 million
